User: `Rhododendrites`

Long-time Wikimedian who decided, a few years ago, to try to take better pictures to contribute to Commons. I feel like I've learned a lot from this community, and continue to do so. Always welcome photography tips/constructive criticism.

Though I take pictures of lots of things, a few areas of concentration are the New York City area in general, protests, conventions (not so much in 2020), and birds (much more so in 2020). If you're in NYC (or coming to NYC) and want tips or to plan a photography outing, let me know. There are several Wikimedian photographers here.

My main camera is an Olympus OM-D E-M5 mark ii (micro four-thirds format). I like it, but don't know if I can recommend the format any longer. Olympus announced in 2020 that they plan to get out of the camera game. The future of its camera business seems unclear at the moment, possibly being transferred to another company, and Panasonic is the only other company making the gear (with some compatibility issues around the way they do their image stabilization). I hope it'll look up, but we'll see.

This is my main account for contributing to Wikimedia projects. From March-July 2021, I contracted with the Wikimedia Foundation, researching the impact of Suggested Edits on Commons. My WMF account is User:Rhododendrites (WMF), which is now inactive. Edits I make through this account are strictly as a volunteer.

Rhododendrites

rhododendrites AT gmail DOT com

(FP-VI-QI)

 
Featured Pictures - the birds
Image 1American coot in Prospect Park
Image 2Piping plover chick in Queens
Image 3Apricot Mandarin duckling in Royal Lazienki Park
Image 4Female northern cardinal in Central Park
Image 5Female wood duck
Image 6White-breasted nuthatch on a suet feeder in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 7Cedar waxwing in pokeweed in Prospect Park
Image 8Chipping sparrow on a grave in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 9Northern mockingbird in a "tail up" display in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 10Downy woodpecker foraging in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 11Immature mute swan in Prospect Park
Image 12Blue jay fledgling calling for its parent in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 13Great egret stabbing the water in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 14Tree swallow on a nest box in Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 15Male black-throated green warbler in Prospect Park
Image 16A rescued American kestrel that couldn't be released so is now serving as an "ambassador" bird
Image 17White-breasted nuthatch doing its nuthatchy pose in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 18American avocet
Image 19Scarlet tanager eating a berry in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 20Black-capped chickadee at a feeder in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 21Brown thrasher (snow-nosed variety) in Central Park
Image 22Immature herring gull manipulating a clam in Marine Park, Brooklyn
Image 23Female brown-headed cowbird chattering in Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 24Purple martin in flight in Cape May, New Jersey
Image 25American robin making a dog whistle-like alarm call in Prospect Park
Image 26Semipalmated sandpiper at the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 27Ring-billed gull preening/bathing in Marine Park
Image 28A rescued Eurasian eagle-owl
Image 29Baltimore oriole (immature/female) in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 30Cape May warbler in Prospect Park
Image 31Western tanager which popped up in NYC, far from its usual range
Image 32American oystercatcher family portrait on Fort Tilden beach
Image 33Mute swan and cygnets on a duckweed-covered pond
Image 34Great blue heron lurching its head back to swallow a brown watersnake in Green Cay Wetlands
Image 35Song sparrow on Lookout Hill in Prospect Park
Image 36Killdeer at the South Cape May Meadows
Image 37Immature cooper's hawk in Prospect Park
Image 38Brown creeper about to be released at a bird banding station in the United States
Image 39Ovenbird in Prospect Park
Image 40Anna's hummingbird in Pacifica, California
Image 41Lesser yellowlegs wading at the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 42Northern mockingbird on a fence in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn
Image 43Field sparrow in Central Park
Image 44Downy woodpecker with a leaf on its nose in Prospect Park
Image 45Bay-breasted warbler in Central Park
Image 46Male yellow-rumped warbler singing in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 47Palm warbler in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 48Gray catbird in Prospect Park
Image 49House finch with a sunflower seed at a feeder in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 50Tufted titmouse with a seed in Prospect Park
Image 51Yellow-bellied sapsucker in Central Park
Image 52Blue jay in Prospect Park
Image 53Male northern shoveler in Marine Park, Brooklyn
Image 54Short-billed dowitcher in the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge East Pond
Image 55White ibis in Ocean City, New Jersey (I kind of prefer the uncropped version)
Image 56Black-and-white warbler in Prospect Park
Image 57Veery in the Central Park Ramble
Image 58Gray catbird watching a hawk fly overhead in the Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Image 59Ruby-crowned kinglet in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 60Close-up of a white-throated sparrow in Central Park
Image 61Winter wren in Prospect Park
Image 62Lesser yellowlegs at the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 63American robin
Image 64House sparrows in Central Park
Image 65Great blue heron in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 66Wood duck drake vocalizing in Central Park
Image 67White-throated sparrow in Prospect Park
Image 68House wren doing its best eel impression guarding its nestbox.
Image 69European starling in Central Park
Image 70Common grackle showing off its iridescence in Central Park
Image 71Juvenile Forster's tern calling for its parent in Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 72Great kiskadee in La Fortuna, Costa Rica
Image 73Cedar waxwing in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 74Northern flicker looking out from its nest in the Central Park North Woods
Image 75First winter laughing gull in Riverhead, New York
Image 76Marsh wren singing at Hammonasset Beach State Park
Image 77Canada goose gosling in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 78Great black-backed gull in Quogue, NY
Image 79Red-tailed hawk, fearsome predator
Image 80Male house sparrow in Prospect Park
Image 81Northern shoveler pair "shoveling" together in Marine Park, Brooklyn
Image 82Ring-billed gull in Red Hook, Brooklyn
Image 83Snowy egret
Image 84Tropical kingbird in the rain by Lake Arenal
Image 85Western gull sitting on a boat in San Francisco Bay
Image 86Snowy egret in Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 87Piping plover in Queens
Image 88Black-capped chickadee eating seeds in Central Park
Image 89Ring-billed gull in a rainbow over Niagara Falls
Image 90Eastern wood pewee in Central Park
Image 91Mute swan cygnet pontoon on a duckweed-covered pond
Image 92Rehabilitated eastern screech owl
Image 93Gray catbird in Central Park
Image 94Huge flock of gulls just after they were spooked by something during a horseshoe crab feeding frenzy in Cape May, New Jersey
Image 95Western kingbird at Bush Terminal Park
Image 96Golden-crowned kinglet
Image 97Mourning dove perched in Prospect Park, Brooklyn
Image 98Green heron in Prospect Park
Image 99Juvenile yellow-bellied sapsucker in Prospect Park
Image 100European starlings on a birdhouse on Staten Island
Image 101Northern cardinal female in Central Park
Image 102Redhead in Central Park
Image 103Red-tailed hawk yearbook photo, class of 2022, Central Park
Image 104Female hooded merganser resting on the Central Park Reservoir
Image 105Gray catbird with a chokeberry in Prospect Park
Image 106Ring-billed gull in flight over Red Hook, Brooklyn
Image 107Red-necked phalarope at the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 108Ospreys in a nest on Sandy Hook, New Jersey
Image 109Northern rough-winged swallows in Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 110Male northern cardinal in Central Park
Image 111Three ring-billed gulls in Red Hook
Image 112Great blue heron on frozen pond in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 113Fish crow cawing in Red Hook, Brooklyn
Image 114Mandarin duck drake in eclipse plumage in Royal Lazienki Park
Image 115Juvenile yellow-crowned night heron at Plumb Beach
Image 116Marsh wren singing at Hammonasset Beach State Park
Image 117American tree sparrow in Central Park
Image 118Dark-eyed junco at Bush Terminal Park
Image 119Pine siskin in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 120Blackpoll warbler in a flowering dogwood tree in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 121Tufted titmouse floofed up in Central Park
Image 122Juvenile American robin
Image 123Northern waterthrush in Central Park
Image 124Red-tailed hawk rescue
 
Featured Pictures - everything else
Image 1Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge East Pond
Image 2Redbeckia occidentalis
Image 3Hell Gate Bridge
Image 4Eastern gray squirrel in Central Park
Image 5Eldridge Street Synagogue
Image 6Common buckeye in Eagle Creek Park, Indianapolis
Image 7A cavapoo dog chasing a malipoo dog with a ball
Image 8California sea lion in La Jolla. My first experience seeing wild sea lions in person. It was ... loud. This one just looked downright majestic in the sun.
Image 9An island (with ospreys) in Trustom Pond in the fog
Image 10Monarch butterfly
Image 11Green iguana panorama in Palm Beach County
Image 12Male eastern amberwing dragonfly in the Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Image 13The Dyker Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn is known for lots of elaborate Christmas lights, earning the nickname "Dyker Lights"
Image 14Alexander Hamilton Custom House Collector's Room ceiling. Had to be a bit obnoxious to get this one, setting up a little tripod in the center of a crowded room and actually getting down on the floor to frame it. Who doesn't like a nice ornate ceiling with a nautical theme, though?
Image 15Quarry in Makhtesh Ramon
Image 16Toronto Reference Library interior from the top floor
Image 17Large milkweed bug
Image 18Window in a cafe in San Gimignano, Italy
Image 19Black Lives Matter mural in Greenpoint, Brooklyn
Image 20Great golden digger wasp in Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Image 21Defunct Chestnut Hill Pumping Station in Boston
Image 22Moschino fall 2014 ready-to-wear ensemble in the Camp: Notes on Fashion exhibit at the Met
Image 23Group photo of four pears
Image 24Coleus
Image 25Proboscis bats in Alajuela Province, Costa Rica
Image 26Duomo Firenze terrace
Image 27Memorial to the victims of the Orlando nightclub shooting, taken just after Stonewall Inn was designated part of a National Monument
Image 28Condenser at the defunct Chestnut Hill Pumping Station
Image 29Rooftop farm on the Lower East Side
Image 30Monarch butterfly
Image 31Composite of a clementine with/without peel
Image 32Crocuses in early spring.
Image 33Waldemarsviken in Stockholm
Image 34Makhtesh Ramon
Image 35Immature male blue dasher
Image 36California sea lion nap time at La Jolla Cove
Image 37Male elephant seal resting between fights in Ano Nuevo
Image 38Open Ocean exhibit at Monterey Bay Aquarium
Image 39Male tiger swallowtail butterfly in Central Park (missing its tails)
Image 40Oculus
Image 41Nine-banded armadillo in Costa Rica
Image 42Florence seen from the Duomo terrace
Image 43Ash tree behind a columbarium in Mount Auburn Cemetery
Image 44Fulton Center skylight
Image 45American lady butterfly on a purple coneflower
Image 46Coney Island Mermaid Parade
Image 47The Seaside Sanatorium in Connecticut
Image 48TWA Hotel
Image 49Baird's tapir mother with baby in Costa Rica
Image 50White (leucistic) eastern gray squirrel perched on a tree in Brooklyn
Image 51Maroon Bells. Easily one of the most awe-inspiring natural scenes I've experienced.
Image 52Wonder Wheel sign on Coney Island
Image 53Magnolia x veitchii bud
Image 54Salix catkins
Image 55Coney Island Mermaid Parade (no, this is not a picture of Rhododendrites)
Image 56Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco (18-frame panorama)
Image 57Sunset sky over Governors Island, NYC (panorama)
Image 58Chinese mantis ootheca in Marine Park, Brooklyn
Image 59Burberry rainbow cape at the Camp: Notes on Fashion exhibition
Image 60Manhattan at night, looking north from Rockefeller Center
Image 61Pond sliders (red and yellow) and a river cooter fighting for basking space
Image 62Bigfin reef squid at Monterey Bay Aquarium
Image 63Eastern amberwing
Image 64Optical illusion on the floor of the Florence Cathedral
Image 65Abandoned building in Floyd Bennett Field
Image 66Comme des Garcons at the Met
Image 67Lincoln Center during Pride at dusk
Image 68Frizzle sizzle
Image 69Daubeny's water lily
Image 70A mural of patients in the long-defunct Ellis Island Immigrant Hospital
Image 71Cattlianthe Gold Digger ‘Orglade's Mandarin’ orchid
Image 72Mantled howler monkey with baby in Costa Rica
Image 73A [pretty dodgy] bridge along a cliff path at the edge of Makhtesh Ramon
Image 74Northern elephant seals in Ano Nuevo, California
Image 75Monarch butterfly caterpillar on butterfly weed
Image 76Stata Center at MIT
Image 77Bow Bridge in Central Park (panorama)
Image 78Crook Point Bascule Bridge in Providence. It's been stuck in the open position for 50 years. A local landmark, but slated for destruction soon.
Image 79Raccoon in Central Park
Image 80Triq San Patrizju facing the Basilica Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Valletta, Malta
Image 81Hudson Yards in New York, taken from the top of Hudson Commons (9-frame panorama)
Image 82Sarracenia leucophylla
Image 83One World Trade Center through the Oculus
Image 84Razor clamshell dress from spring/summer 2001, in the Sleeping Beauties exhibition at The Met
Image 85Eastern chipmunk with stuffed cheeks in Prospect Park
Image 86Strawberry poison dart frog in Costa Rica
Image 87Familiar bluet in the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 88Boston Public Garden
Image 89Sasheer Zamata at a Time's Up event during the Tribeca Film Festival
Image 90Quogue Village Wetlands Preserve
Image 91Rice paper butterfly with light shining through in Butterfly World, Florida
Image 92Panorama of the Apennine Colossus in Tuscany
Image 93Lower Manhattan panorama
Image 94A mural of patients in the long-defunct Ellis Island Immigrant Hospital
Image 95Bee balm seedhead
Image 96Algal mat in Marine Park, Brooklyn
Image 97Sukkah at Congregation Emanu-El of New York
Image 98White (leucistic) eastern gray squirrel with a peanut
Image 99Pond sliders in Prospect Park
Image 100Hell Gate Bridge walking path on Randall's Island
Image 101Juvenile Nubian ibex on a wall at the edge of Makhtesh Ramon
Image 102Glass blower. This was moments before he accidentally dropped it. Heartbreaking (and vasebreaking). Talented folks here, though, and I actually went back a while later and took a class. Got a piece of lit up frozen spaghetti to prove it.
Image 103Moss-covered oak trees in the Bothe-Napa Valley State Park
Image 104Panorama of the once-active waterfront of Sunset Park, Brooklyn
Image 105Eastern cicada killer perched on a black-eyed susan
Image 106Maroon Bells
Image 107Hell Gate Bridge, with a scow being towed along the Hell Gate section of the East River
Image 108Pier 66 and Hudson Yards
Image 109Ship in the San Francisco Bay fog. Got lucky with the dramatic fog on this one, which opened up just enough to frame the ship in light.
Image 110Red squirrel in Lazienki Park
Image 111Saint Christopher Street in Valletta
Image 112Bluebells in the Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Image 113Arenal volcano
Image 114Two juvenile Nubian ibex
Image 115Prospect Park Vale of Cashmere covered in lesser celandine, with a leucistic white squirrel in the distance
Image 116Jun Takahashi dress for Undercover in the Sleeping Beauties exhibition at the Met
Image 117City Hall Station in Manhattan, abandoned since 1945 because it looked cool but didn't
Image 118Abandoned van by Gerritsen Creek
Image 119Abandoned car in Marine Park, Brooklyn